Oumar 9-1-1

In this part of Montreal, everyone calls on Oumar when they need a hand. Now a Canadian citizen, Oumar is from Burkina Faso; he shoulders responsibility for others as naturally as a traveller slips on his pack. All his neighbours rely on him… to fix their cars, to help them move. People tend to gather round Oumar as he works, and talk often turns to serious issues of politics, religion, feminism, polygamy… Oumar is the eldest son of his family; in eight months he will be returning to visit for the first time in six years. He is already amassing the hundreds of gifts he will take back. Where he comes from, you only leave your family to seek your fortune, and theirs; otherwise you are a failure. Oumar has become the repository of everyone’s dreams.